Gallagher to make NHL debut

Brendan Gallagher will make his NHL debut Tuesday night when the Canadiens are home to the Florida Panthers (7:30 p.m., RDS, TSN 690 Radio).

“I’m going to go out there and do the things that have gotten me this far,” said Gallagher, who will be playing on a line with Brandon Prust and fellow rookie Alex Galchenyuk. “I’ll try to use my speed, go hard to the net and try to create some space for myself. Gally and I have been rooming together and we’re pretty close and Prust is out there as our baby-sitter.”

Gallagher said he didn’t expect nerves to be a problem.

“I’ve played in some big games before, not as big as this one, and I’ll be using that experience to help me tonight,” Gallagher said.

Coach Michel Therrien said he liked the speed Gallagher and Galchenyuk brought to the lineup and he talked about moving Galchenyuk from the wing to centre.

“We have a window in which to evaluate him and it’s closing,” said Therrien, referring to the fact the team must make a decision on whether to return Galchenyuk to the junior Sarnia Sting before he plays his sixth NHL game. “We see him in practice, but it’s different in games and we want to see him in a variety of roles.”

Lars Eller is the odd man out from the opening-night roster. He’s a healthy scratch along with Mike Blunden and defenceman Yannick Weber.

In another change, Josh Gorges may see some action on the second power-play unit, but he said his focus is playing solid defence against the Panthers.

“This is their third game in four nights and we have to jump on them from the start,” Gorges said.

The veteran defenceman said the Canadiens have to pay close attention to Alex Kovalev.

“When he was here, I had to go up against him every day in practice and he’s the most talented player in the NHL,” Gorges said.

Yes let’s put our pathetic small forwards together so we can watch the mighty shrimps being pushed to the outside ala DD, Gionta, Prust…..and watch as Cole/Patches/White also be pushed to the outside, and heck Moen/Chucky/Galy also be pushed to the outside. Since when do we have a hab who can both score and crash the net? Sure we got the pile on the puck defense cause Gorges the twisting weed can’t push people away and DD and others are way too small, heck you could have Bouillion lie down and he’s still be 5 feet 5 inches sideways or standing up….heck maybe if all the habs laid down in front of Price ala Gil, we could actually reach 6 feet 3 inches tall…..

Chris, I also partially agree with you on calculators in the class. I rarely let my students use one. But there’s a groundswell of “kids love technology, it’s how they learn, so let’s get tech into the classroom.” Unfortunately, this defaults to the use of graphing calculators.

I’d much rather a student incorporate tech only when they need it: for example, manipulating an equation ultimately results in solving a cubic or quartic equation – and then only at this point does the student turn to Wolfram Alpha.

On the topic of how to resolve 3-space vectors into components, I’d think a worthwhile assignment would be to get students to write some code/script that will accept several vectors as inputs, resolve them, and then add/subtract/multiply them. That would require students to know how to do it, yet incorporate a challenging, interesting problem while also removing the boring repetition of resolving vectors for a whole semester.

No question…there has to be a happy marriage of technology with content. My only reservation is that it must not come at the expense of fundamental knowledge. Technology is a tool…we can use it to facilitate or amplify learning, but the concepts still have to reign at the end of the day.

The next 5-10 years should be interesting, as I feel like the technology is finally at the point where we can do some truly interesting things with it, as opposed to just “show-and-tell” applications as has been traditionally the case.

I’ll spare the rest of the people on the board any long drawn-out conversation on this topic, but it is definitely interesting to get your viewpoint earned working with the students in high schools.

Yeah, I don’t get the point of graphing calculators. As a grade 12 functions student, the only time it’s really helpful is when you are investigating the behaviours of a new function or checking whether the function you have graphed is correct. Other than that you don’t get to use them on the test anyways, so might as well stick to paper and pencil. If I can’t do that I would be screwed big time for university this fall.

In Nova Scotia, our provincial grade 12 math exam (actually written in grade 11 for most students, don’t ask) requires a graphing calculator. As do parts of the International Baccalaureate exams. So it’s becoming part of the culture, for better or for worse.

Think of this season as a protracted pre-season. The Habs are more than likely going to finish last in the NE Division anyway, even with the Superstar Elite Defenceman PK Subban in the line up.

This is a bridge year… to next year… which will be a development year. Hopefully… by 2013-14 the Habs will have what it takes to make the play-offs. Until then, grab the cameras and take photos for posterity and watch as our little children take their first baby steps and voice their first full sentences.

The Habs scoring last year was poor …The Cole DD Maxpac had a great season but to expect them to score more goals this year was unlikely…Plecks and Eller scored 19 and 17 goals i dont think they would score too much more this year….the 4th line players improved but overall goals from them would not be much more than last year…Gio is hoped scores his usual 25 plus goals but that would basically replace his 11 goals and ak46 and camm goals….so in a convoluted way beyond any suprises from young forwards the 25 more goals for the forwards to score are in the hands of Bourque..lol ..prorated for shortened season..

The TKO as you say was not a shot to the face or head. Orr, being the shorter player, gave him a hard body shot which Scott went down on one knee from. The linesmen jumped in and held Scott who was still on one knee. Before that Orr was lucky to be still standing. Orr being the scum bag he is gave him a shot to the head while he was down. The shot to the head had no effect on Scott. Actually Scott was laughing at Orr who was going around like he was some type of champion of the world. As you can see I dislike Orr and can hardly wait till there is a rematch.

This whole benching Eller hoopla is just hoopla. I’m looking forward to seeing what Gally can do and how Chucky plays at centre. I’m sure Larry understands the need to evaluate these guys while they are up.

On a similar subject, it’s clear we have a bit of a logjam at centre. I’m not sure if Chucky will stay this season, but next season I am sure he will be up. If so, that makes a centre expendable. Assuming that one day Chucky is our #1, Eller or DD can be our #2, so who is the odd man out?

Not all oysters produce pearls, thankfully, Price is a pearl producing oyster.

If Eller doesn’t get traded this year I guess Pleks would have to be the one. It would be a bit of a shame, we’ve had him his whole career – raised him from an egg. But he would supply a great return, save us some cap space, and free up some much-needed center room. I’d just hope the other guys could replace his points and PK expertise.

He isn’t ahead though. Not statistically and not from the point of view of consistent effort. These aren’t subjective things, they’re right there on the ice. I like Eller, but he’s got a step to go yet.

I just hope Gallagher and Galchenyuk play a great game. That would force the issue with a team that has been in limbo for 20 years. The Habs have never embraced a true rebuild, they always try to add an old expensive piece to the mix hoping to squeeze into the playoffs. They need to recognize that this team has some great building blocks – Price, PK, Patches,Eller, Galchenyuk, Tinordi, Beaulieu, Gallagher and some others. They need to realize that their young core is the group that may one day restore greatness to this Franchise. This should be a transition year, a continuation of the rebuild. At the trade deadline the Habs should be looking for draft picks and high end prospects in exchange for players on the wrong side of 30 – Gionta, Pleks, Bourque, Kaberle, Markov, and Cole. A good rebuild doesn’t happen overnight and if the Habs don’t have a plan we will just continue to be a mediocre or below average team.

Seeing as Montreal and every other team everywhere on earth now plays a collapsing box+plus+one in their own zone, it is pretty hard for a centre to blow coverage in front of the net. That’s his job, it’s where he’s supposed to be.

But that’s not my issue with Eller. It’s more his game in the other end of the rink.

This move is purely because of bad asset management. They signed a bunch of plugs who they can’t bench as they are veterans. But then they kept up two young kids to take a look at meaning that they would have to bench others.

I would be a bit surprised if Galchenyuk stays up (there is almost no chance that Gallagher stays). But asset management is going to be a recurring discussion right now with Eller, Weber and Diaz, as these guys need to be played appropriately to maximize their development potential and/or return in the even of a trade. In the even that Galchenyuk stays up, it is really going to become a sideshow.

This is a perfect season to play the kids. The Habs will suck equally playing veterans or kids…they just are not a well-constructed team. But I would rather see the kids developing than plugs who won’t be here when the team stops sucking.

For my money, he and the much-maligned Rene Bourque were the only guys that showed any consistent hustle all night.

I was a little surprised to see that he was taking flak for the Bozak goal. He was where he was supposed to be, covering the left point. Armstrong drifted too far over (he was responsible for the middle/right point.

White blocked the shot by Phaneuf, got up, and almost blocked the second by Kessel (and it would have hurt a lot if he succeeded…not supposed to use the side of your skate boot!). Bozak slipped away from Bouillon in behind Armstrong and White.

Other than that, White skated and won his battles. That’s all I ask from a fourth line forward. He was miles better than Prust, Armstrong or Moen.

Bourque was the only other forward who I felt played well. The rest of the team didn’t show up. Pacioretty had a couple of flashes, but he was also stick-handling a hand grenade. Many bobbles.

I agree, it´s a perfect season to give the young kids more playing time.
Eevery one knows what Prust(who i thought played well btw), armstrong, Moen, and White bring to the table. Benching them serves no purpose.
The fact that Eller is occasionally benched shows precisely that management believes he has enough talent that, if combined with motivation and dedication, just might blossom into a good player.
Possibly similar to what is happening to Leblanc in Hamilton….Though I have to say, resigning him to be a third liner for life at such an early point in his career kinda makes it seem like he isn´t going to justify the 18th overall pick he was taken with.

Also, it was clear to anyone watching that the timing was off for players on both teams. It will take at least 3 games for players to get into sync. I think the first game in no way shape or form represents what the team is capable of…though i was slightly encouraged with Bourque, Emelin, and definitely with Price.
Way to early to tell about Markov.
Interesting that there are such conflicting and polarizing views about him from just that first game. I think we are all kinda holding our breath.

I think it is the culture change we have all been promised. Unless you have been at the top of the ladder you are going to have to climb your way up… fairly simple concept. Once at the top of the ladder you will be given time to prove you deserve to remain there and if not I expect those players to feel the wrath as well (assuming there is someone better to replace them with). This sends a good message to the kids like Gally and Chucky, who our future will rely upon. Given time this approach will impart a positive effect on the organization. Those players that cannot handle this approach need to be moved as you cannot win with them.

I´m truly confounded by the love for Eller on this site. Yeah, we´re really going to suffer by foregoing his 28 points which he put up last season, and 16 goals, four of which came in one game against a sh$ty team.
Eller in my mind has done just enough to warrant keeping a chance to prove himself on the third line. He´s nowhere near Plekanec or Desharnais as an offensive player.
Some say he had Darche and Moen for most of the year last season; I believe he had Kostitsyn for a good part of the season; imagine what his point production may have been without AK…less than 20 points?
I´m all for still giving a shot to Eller, mostly because he is young, he´s not small, and Galchenyuk probably isn´t ready yet to take one fo the top three spots yet.
I think Eller has the potential to POSSIBLY become a good offensive player. But he´s not a cinch. Right now, he´s the third best centre on the team, no question, and is a much more inconsistent player than Pleks and DD.
Eller is too good to sit? Come on folks.
And you know what? If The Kid lights it up the next four games, the team is going to have a very interesting decision.
Undoubtedly he would have put up better point totals playing with Pax and Cole last year, but I simply don´t believe the line as a whole would have been as successful without DD. He simply has more offensive vision, and knows how to make better decisions and better use of his teamates at this point than Eller. Even when a player is playing with subpar teamates, he will still be noticed if he has the talent and is working hard. Eller hasn´t done enough to get noticed up to now. He will have this season to prove all his doubters wrong.

It’s a basic training camp decision.
The habs aren’t winning the Cup. They may not make the play-offs. Galchenyuk is probably going back to Junior so that a year is not wasted on 48 games. They need a good look at him.
Eller misses a game, Gallagher plays. Big deal. I don’t see Lars Eller going home to snort tears and snot all over his pillow.
Yes, these games matter, bit no realistic team leadership can look at this as anything but a tryout season for the first three to five games. I’m sure they want to win, but there is a process at work and it’s a needed one.
Chill, watch, see how it plays out… these guys have overlapping roles and it all has to be worked out on the ice, and not on paper.

I’m looking forward to seeing Gallagher in the NHL, just as I’m looking forward to watching Eller develop as the season moves along.

Honestly…probably not. Those three clicked together. Change any one of the players on that line and they might not have had the same result.

All three had career years. By your assumption you are saying it would only be DD who had the career year which is incorrect they all did.

Pleks was having an off year last year and had trouble clicking with anyone at the start and I am not sure Eller has the same vision YET that DD has. DD is a little older and had played with Max in the AHL.

Thank you for being one of the few people who sees that DD takes the puck to the net. Other players don’t bother trying, like they assume they will lose the puck. DD tries it and often catches defenders off guard. He’s not afraid to make different types of plays and this makes him unpredictable and more difficult for opposing teams to read.

I don’t think so. Pleks might have worked but Desharnais does have a chip on his shoulder that makes him fun to watch. He’s a small player, but a skilled one, and he plays hard. The chemistry was there, and the line worked very well.
Eller is one of my favourite habs, and I think he will develop into an important player. But he was inconsistent last year. Granted, the team was a shambles and there was not a lot of development going on, but Eller was prone to looking tentative.
I don’t believe DD is there because he is francophone, which is a subtext in what a lot of posters are unhappy with. He’s small, but there is a talent there, and there is a fire.
If the organization stabilizes, Eller should gain confidence and become something. In the unlikely case of them keeping Galchenyuk up with the team after 5 games, my guess is he’ll develop very quickly compared to Eller. I don’t know about Gallagher, but he has battled and delivered at every level, and I am really pulling for him.
Eller isn’t sitting because of DD or Gallagher. The issue is Galchenyuk’s extended tryout. That’s the focus and I think that’s the story.

You know, I really don’t think the Habs wanted to keep Desharnais, because of his size. The guy earned an NHL spot in spite of that, and that has to be respected. He is a positive on the team, not a negative as some would have it.

No worries. I apologize they came so late. I was dealing with a nasty surprise from the online learning system that we’re trying out this semester.

(For the record, online learning is definitely the future in education…I wish more universities would get in on this now. To teach effectively, you have to reach the kids where they live. Kids today do not read textbooks, but they will gobble up online content covering the same material)

In the one I use, they have short animated videos (2-4 minutes) where they discuss concepts and theory. They also work through sample problems and step students through how to solve problems.

Each topic has a pre-lecture (to be watched before the lecture I give in class), a concept test (where they get immediate feedback and can leave comments for me as to what they would like to see covered in class, which I access the morning of the lectures and tailor what I’m teaching accordingly) and then a homework assignment that is actually for grades. The concept tests also let me pull up statistics in class on how they did on a particular question, so that I can demonstrate where they are having trouble as a class…all too often, students think they are the only ones struggling with a concept, and are more likely to engage when we can show them that they are actually part of the majority and let’s now go fix the misunderstanding. We do similar things using iClickers in class.

Basically, it replaces textbooks with a more interactive experience that also gives the instructor a chance to do just-in-time teaching, tailoring your lectures to feedback from the students.

That does sound like a step forward. My only concern with those on-line tests is that they are usually selected response, true/false, or fill in one blank with a number. It’s hard for students to show their thinking – and therefore tougher for teachers to diagnose the problem. But it does sound interesting.

Regarding your curriculum comments – I was going to write a book-length response, but instead I’ll just say that all of those topics you mention as area of weakness are well-represented in the curriculum. So perhaps your concern is less with the courses and rather how they are taught/the teachers teaching them.

I actually am unsure if high schools should teach calculus. If every BSc student has to take intro to calc, then why even offer it at the high school level?

Also, I assume since it is January that you are seeing students taking intro to physics part 2, or perhaps a 2nd year course in physics. Then these students have already been through an intro math course or two at Guelph. Shouldn’t your math profs had fixed any outstanding issues left over from high school?

And I also agree – textbooks are a thing of the past, or should be. Nothing will ever be as good as getting a group of people together to learn (like a traditional classroom or lab). Barring that, a setup like the one you’re desribing sounds good, as an alternative.

Most of the answers are fill in the number. But you can still break a question into enough parts that we can figure it out.

The other nice thing is that the problems are randomized by the software, but I can still see every student’s individual answers, how long they spent on the problem and how many different answers they try. It usually only takes me a minute or two to diagnose most problems.

As for the math issues, I agree that most of those things should be represented in the curriculum. But for some reason it isn’t translating up. Smarter minds than mine have tried to figure out the issues, and we’ve had all sorts of summits, committees and panels addressing it.

My own personal belief is that we should be offering more online material to students BEFORE they enter a course to make sure that we’re on the same page. But there is little buy-in because these types of online “courses” are incredibly time intensive and most profs are already stretched way too far with their administrative, teaching and research duties.

If I was staying in the field, that would be my direction of choice. But I’m one foot out now, with just three months to go before unemployment. The market for contract teaching in Canada is about to get a LOT uglier as all the universities try to fix their financial crises. I figured I’ll take the graceful exit instead of the boot in the butt. 🙂

It’s my understanding Eller has been spotted wandering aimlessly throughout downtown Montreal. He has apparantly already found a cardboard house which he plans on staying in tonight despite the cold weather. He feels his career is over.

Lots of comments made about the opening ceremony.I understand that the Torch is somewhat cliched but for me ,I enjoy the symbolism of all those Stanley Cup fingers passing the Torch. Compare that to the parade ground of vulgarity at the ACC last night. Darcy Tucker? A spaceman? That was beyond maudlin amigos, it was grotesque.

Honestly, I don’t know. I would have been fine with that as well. I’m sure some on here would be just as disgusted as they are now though.
I can only guess that Therrien thinks White & Armstrong either played better than Eller, or he prefers their style in the line-up when inserting a smaller player.
My only point is I personally don’t really think it’s a big deal.
For the record, I prefer Eller to either of those guys.

Go Habs Go!!

“Fans are great, but the quickest way to start losing is to listen to them.” – Sam Pollock

White actually IS a natural centre. He played centre all through junior hockey and played some centre (usually considered one of the top defensive centres and the best faceoff centre in the WHL) and spent some time there in Hamilton.

Yes, but I would argue that they have miscast him in the NHL. I think White actually has the potential to be a very good NHL centre for a fourth line. He hits, he blocks shots, he skates hard, he kills penalties and he is defensively responsible. With a return to his natural position, the faceoff skills will come back. What more do we want?

If DD was benched now any sane person would express some measure of surprise.

He is coming off an excellent season, and is obviously a hard worker who has given no indication of an attitude problem. What would be the logic behind sitting him?

Your French media comment is illogical. There is no earthly reason to bench DD. A better example might be “If Therien sent Leblanc back to Hamilton the French Media would have a meltdown.” Except he did and they didn’t.

Eller’s a good player. But sitting him is the right move if he wants to put Chucky at center. Compared to DD and Pleks Eller is the youngest, the least established, and still earning his stripes. That’s all.

There is a lot of hate for Michel Therrien on this site, with suggestions that he should be fired because his team didn’t win the first game or because of sitting Lars Eller. To me this is preposterous. The team almost never wins games following an on-ice celebration; they nearly always come out flat.

Also, I don’t think it has been stressed enough how much of a disadvantage teams with new coaches are at going into this lockout-shortened season. It’s not just a slight disadvantage; it’s a major one. Every coach has a different system and wants different things from his team; it’s going to take time for Therrien to turn this collection of players into a team that plays the way he wants.

As for the Eller benching; at this stage I wouldn’t read any more into it than a need to get Gallagher some ice-time and a desire to try different combinations. Therrien has to figure out what works best; he can’t do that without trying different things.

Firing Therrien after game one is a joke – and it’s too bad some people take that statement seriously. The suggestion is that he shouldn’t have been hired in the first place. Now we are saddled with him for at least 2 season and same goes for Bergevin.

So Habs will continue this perpetual “building for the future, sucking in the present”mode.

What? You don’t like Bergevin? So far I’m impressed with the guy. Therrien is not my favorite decision but besides that he seems to be doing the right things. Beef up the line, get rid of Gomer, good draft, good rationale for his decisions… even playing a little hardball with PK. Gauthier would have PK at $6.5/year for 7 years now.

I was kidding about McGuire but I’m not a fan of the hardball with PK thing. Other teams have great players and they get them signed.
I’d be totally fine with a long term contract for PK, but at about 5M. I doubt Bergevin has gone there yet.

Go Habs Go!!

“Fans are great, but the quickest way to start losing is to listen to them.” – Sam Pollock

I can’t stand Michel Therrien personally because I think he was just a terrible hockey coach in both Montreal and Pittsburgh.

But I don’t think he should be fire for sitting Lars Eller. I just have no intention of following the team for the rest of this year while they monkey their youngsters (Eller, Weber, Diaz if Subban re-signs) around so that we can get more development time in for Travis Moen, Brandon Prust, Petteri Nokelainen, Colby Armstrong and Francis Bouillon, who are all going to play such a crucial role for this team moving forwards.

I really don’t quite understand what Bergevin was doing with some of those signings, but I do think there is some writing starting to show up on the wall for Eller’s long-term place in Montreal. Last year should have been a breakout year for Eller, but Martin was playing mind-games with him until he was fired. In the second half, Eller was one of the better Montreal forwards, working hard every game despite crap linemates and evolving into one of their best two-way forwards.

Now we’re right back to square one. Mind-games and unwanted controversy surrounding a kid who just needs to play hockey games. If it isn’t going to be in Montreal, just do him a favour and ship him out of town while he still carries some trade value.

Eller IS a good NHL player, even if his offence hasn’t bloomed as hoped. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him thrive elsewhere. more and more, I would be surprised to see him thrive in Montreal.

If anybody should sit it should be that cream puff Plekanec. When is he going to man up and stop whining to the refs every time they give him a penalty. I don’t see no “C” on his sweater. Trade him now MB while his value is still high!!!

I can not get over some posters here. Everyone want to know what Gallagher can do, but they bitch about sitting somone. Is the league supposed to increase the roster size so Montreal can try a player???..get over it…it is game #2,

For the record, I think Gallagher should be in Hamilton. He did absolutely nothing down there to demonstrate that there was a burning need to bring him up this season.

So now we have our first controversy. I also felt that Galchenyuk would have been better off in Sarnia. But I can at least see the logic in promoting a 3rd overall pick and guy that tore up his league.

Gallagher was a late round pick that may or may not become an NHL regular. He’s got a lot of development to do still.

Bring him up next season when you can clear out some of the dead weight on the roster. Let him continue to improve with first line minutes in the AHL, instead of spot third or fourth line minutes in the NHL for 5 games.

Like others have said, I think it’s about seeing the Gallys more than punishing Eller.

And though I personally love Eller, and don’t think he deserves to sit, it’s not a big deal as long as it doesn’t become a usual thing. In fact, like it does for a lot of young players, it may light a fire to prove that’s his spot on the roster.

Putting a physical guy on that line makes sense. And Eller isn’t really a crash and bang 4th liner, which seems to be the makeup Therrien is going for.

And of course I think he cares. I also think he’s incredibly mature for his age and will respond to it as challenge rather than act like a petulant child and throw a tantrum.

As I said, I wouldn’t have sat him, but this idea that sitting one game will completely destroy his development and confidence, I think is a gross misrepresentation of who Eller is as player and a man.

If he becomes a regular press box visitor, then we can cry bloody murder. Until then, this is an over reaction.

Given that he was a regular press box visitor and/or candidate for benchings last season, it’s not the greatest message for a player who should be a big part of their future to already be right back at it in Game 2 of the new season.

Let’s be realistic and talk about something that is of relevance to this team. Next year’s draft.

It appears that the consensus top-3 right now are McKinnon, Jones and Barkov.

If we have a choice should we pick Seth Jones, or is it too risky to pick a D-man with a top pick?

It’s notoriously harder to judge D-men than attacking forwards.

In 2006 the #1 pick was d-man Erik Johnson. He is now on his 2nd team and no one given the choice would pick him over Toews, Giroux, Kessel or Jordan Staal. The other D-men in the 1st round that year included David Fischer, Mark Mitera, Ty Wishart, Bob Sanguinetti. Together the 8 other first round d-men have played a total of 101 NHL games!

In 2005 top D was Jack Johnson (#3) who is also at best a journeyman, now on his third team. 11 other D-men were chosen that year and only one (Marc Staal) has made it in the NHL.

In 2004 the top D was again at #3 – Cam Barker who also never amounted to much. Of the 8 other first round D men that year only Marc Green is a genuine top NHLer.

It would seem that predicting future success at age 17 is easier for attacking forwards than for defencemen or goalies, so I say let’s pick McKinnon, Barkov or Drouin with our inevitable top 4 pick. If Seth Jones turns into another Shea Weber, well so be it.

Seth Jones. Watching him at the Juniors, he was a key contributor on a gold medal winner. Their second best defenseman. Compared the other draft eligible players, he was light years ahead.

He has an understanding of a professional athletes lifestyle, hopefully a maturity, through his father, which also includes time in undesireable locations and on poor teams.

In your post you mention the busts (or less than stellar) Dmen… You could compile a list of 1st round forwrads who underwhelmed as well. Most people drafted aren’t stars. Most people drafted never play.

However, I would say there are more ‘A’ forwards in the game than there are ‘A’ defensemen. Grab the D.

Seth Jones looks to be the best defensive prospect to come along
in years. Size, skating, O, D, Physicality… too much to pass up. I think you have to draft 1st overall to get him.

Barkov is 6’2″ and 205 pounds and he can skate very well. He’s got a great pedigree (his father had a long career in Europe) and with a hockey coach for a father, there is a good chance that he is fairly far along his development curve.

Like MacKinnon, Barkov is very young (he is still only 17 years old, with a September birthday) and is only just barely eligible for this year’s draft. For all intents and purposes, he’s a full year younger than Seth Jones and six months younger than Jonathan Drouin. This can make a big difference.

Barkov has also put up great numbers playing against men in the Finnish elite league (17 goals and 35 points in 38 games).

saw Barkov during the WJC tournament.
the young man is a beast.
wide body, strong like a bull.
then he gets on the puck and his skills take over – in the wide frame – that’s a deadly combination – he will be strong on the boards and excellent in the open ice.
he is a FANTASTIC prospect.

Eller had a bad game Saturday. He was worse than most of the forwards on the team.

But scratching him is a bad move in my opinion. He was scratched before the holiday break last year and came back with his four goal game. Many like to say that the four goal game was a result of the scratching. Maybe it was and maybe it wasn’t. I have no idea. But it’s worth noting that the big game was more than 10 days after he was scratched.

He was acquired for Halak which brought immediate pressure, and lots of it. He’s been in a third and fourth line role for the vast majority of his time here and somehow 20 goal, 40 point seasons are expected of him right out of the gate with revolving doors on his wings and a severe lack of talent around him, especially last season.

Is humiliating a player under those conditions the right move? Maybe it was the first time although I remain skeptical that it was. A second time? Absolutely not. Some people have said this isn’t about Eller, it’s about getting Gallagher ice-time. Fair enough, but the reason for the scratching doesn’t erase the humiliating nature of it. Embarrassing him after game one of a shortened season in a year where you want consistency is highly likely to produce counter productive results.

On top of that. I’m left wondering how much consideration is being given to how Eller will feel about Therrien following this move. Some told me that Therrien was very hard on Eller during his tv appearances last season. I don’t watch l’Antichambre so I can’t confirm it. But if he was hard on him on the program and is now scratching him after one game, it’s going to leave Eller wondering if this coach wants him.

Pile that on top of the humiliation, the lack of opportunity to produce offense based on his role and linemates and you’ve got a player who’s more likely than not to bail on the organization and request out of here.

Oh by the way this does nothing to help his trade value.

I know that I’ve been critical of Bergevin and Therrien, I feel it’s mostly justified and others don’t. That’s fine. But I don’t think this can be spun in a way that indicates this move has any positive impact on the player, team or organization as a whole.

People have blamed Eller for not developing. Coaches are in place for a reason, and maybe it’s time for a different approach with Eller. The team and player deserve that much if nothing else.

I think if Therrien and Bergevin want Eller to develop, they’re doing it the wrong way. They have some damage control to do if they haven’t already. And if they don’t recognize the problems this can cause, that’s a problem.

What’s the deal with PK contract negotiations? Does Bergevin realize that in order to get a deal done he actually has to talk to the other side? Or is it a done deal that PK is not coming back and they are just sitting waiting for offers?

The team is rebuilding and management is trying to change the atmosphere/attitude. Eller sitting sends a message similar to Galchenyuk being rapidly bumped down to third line last game and Bourque getting bumped up and Blunden staying in the NHL to start… this year will be all about EFFORT. I expect the DD-Pac-Cole line to get cut some slack as well as Plek and Gio but all other forwards appear to be on a short leash. Expect much the same on defense.

My hope is that the same message gets sent to the veterans after a few false starts. Once you have a season that is significant you should be cut some slack and be allowed the chance to get back to where you were. Those that have been disappointing more often than not or have never been there need to know there is a ladder that needs to be climbed to get to the top. Give it time, although bumping and sitting can be a game by game effort changer it is more of a mid to long term culture changer. We were horrible last year and things need to change. Letting the kids like Gallagher and Galchenyuk know what sort of effort level is needed to ensure a roster spot will pay dividends down the road.

Neither one of them was very good – which could be said for quite a few others as well.

MT is looking at some options, and when you do that, someone has to sit. I wouldn’t read anything more into it. It’s not like he said he was unhappy with Ellers play on Saturday…he wants to try out a different 3rd line, which means Eller sits.

I agree they both were not very good and quite a few on the team were not either. I think they just want to see what both Gally’s can do.

I have no problem with MT switching it up for tonight. Eller will be back in next game and might even have some more jump to his game. MT knows it is a make it or break it year for Eller so he may be trying to push his buttons a bit to see how he responds.

Exactly, it all comes down to size unfortunately with Desharnais. Unfortunately Montreal’s main focus on why their teams havn’t done well over the last few years came down to them being too small.

Our inferiority complex as a whole as fans is still on our minds……so even though we are a bigger tougher team, the small guys still need to produce or else people want them shipped out for bigger players.

“I think I may have found a way for us to get Griffey and Bonds, and we really won’t have to give up much” -Costanza

The reason Montreal loses is because we haven’t been able to score consistently since 2007-08.

Desharnais makes his linemates better. Pacioretty was a bit of a mess until he was paired with Desharnais in Hamilton, and his career has taken off. Erik Cole posted his highest goal total ever. Yet DD often has his contribution overlooked, with people asserting that any Montreal centre could have scored with those two linemates.

I think that there is some truth to that some players are better than their stats and some are worse. Eller falls into the better category, while Kaberle falls into the worse. But DD was a very good hockey player last season, and earned the chance to continue his success.

The hate on Therrien is getting so old. Man, give him more games before questioning every move he makes. Posters who critisize after giving little to know time for someone to even have a chance to make an impact…..just can’t be taken seriously.

I’m an Eller fan, and I wish he wasn’t being sat, but it’s just one game. He will be right back, relax.

You may have not liked him ten years ago, or even while he was with Pittsburgh…..but many rookie coaches who started off in Montreal…..whose teams sucked it up, went on to be successful elsewhere. Why can’t Therrien be given that same chance?

Haters gonna hate.

“I think I may have found a way for us to get Griffey and Bonds, and we really won’t have to give up much” -Costanza

Well said mark. I know this is Montreal and we have passion, but just imagine someone coming to this site for the first time and reading some of this stuff after 1 game.
It’s totally ridiculous. They would think some of these people have never watched a game of hockey in their lives.
When I hear that Habs fans are the most intelligent in the league, I really want to believe it.
Thankfully, I consider this site a small sample size, much like those who boo the American anthem at the Bell Centre at times.

Go Habs Go!!

“Fans are great, but the quickest way to start losing is to listen to them.” – Sam Pollock

Paul I agree overreactions after one game are foolish under normal circumstances. But what I think you’re ignoring is that Therrien isn’t new. This isn’t a situation where we have a brand new coach who’s style we don’t understand.

We know Therrien and everything thus far has been just a more talkative version of Martin.

So because he coached the Habs 10 years ago, it’s ok to question every move he makes now?
It is perfectly fine to do it. It’s a free country. I just think it’s a bit ridiculous after 1 game, whether or not Therrien coached the Habs 10 years ago.
He has stated openly that his style is greatly different to the ones the players have played the last few years. I assume there will be an adjustment period. And if you are specifically targeting the 2nd wave of the pp, you may be right. I found that a bit odd as well, but not to the degree that some of you did I guess.

Go Habs Go!!

“Fans are great, but the quickest way to start losing is to listen to them.” – Sam Pollock

mark: My issue with sitting Eller is that this is not a move that is being made in terms of the long term development of the team.

If you want to sit somebody, sit Armstrong. He’s a 30 year old plug with no future on this team. Florida isn’t a goon team, so we don’t need a big tough fourth line for this one. Gallagher could get his start on the fourth line with White and Prust.

Roll all four lines to roughly equal minutes unless one line gets hot. And play the guys that you want to be on the team next season when you’ve got a shot.

If they think Gallagher deserves to be up, they should be playing him. Same with Galchenyuk. But to free up the playing time for those young guys by sitting another young guy is just stupidity. It’s cutting off your nose to spite your face.

The young kids should play if they are going to be carried by the team. I worried that Therrien would end up sitting the other younger players (Eller, White) to find ice time for Galchenyuk (who should get a look) and Gallagher (who should be in Hamilton).

White had a good game on Saturday (2 hits, 1 blocked shot, 1 takeaway, 4-1 on faceoffs) and was generally hustling everywhere. So that meant Eller getting the bench this time to make room for Gallagher.

After last season, where Eller found himself stapled to the bench frequently for minor transgressions that everybody around him could make with impunity, he must have been looking forward to a fresh start. Healthy scratch by game 2 is not much of a fresh start. At the very least, it is an unnecessary distraction for a team that is going nowhere anyways.

Well, you’re not sitting any of your top line after the 1st game of the season. Then again, I doubt anyone on this site would have had any problem with that.
They could have sat one of many players. My guess is they discussed it as a coaching staff and decided there would be very little negative impact to sitting Eller.
Why is every move questioned? Cause it’s Montreal, that’s why.
Guess it would be boring if we were all logical thinkers 😉

Go Habs Go!!

“Fans are great, but the quickest way to start losing is to listen to them.” – Sam Pollock

Fastest way to loose a dressing room for a coach is to mess with the veterans. So yes, youngsters sit while vets for the most part get a free pass. This is every coaches MO, not exclusive to Martin and Therrien.

oh yeah and DD, Cole and max67 had so much more intensity. Eller has to play with different wingers at all times, start with one pair and ends with another. They talk about chemistry, how do they expect him to get any when they are always shifting him around.

Eller looked as good as most of the Habs on Saturday night. He is second line talent and yet management is frustrated by his play when they try to slot him in the 3rd and 4th lines. It’s like putting a Mustang Engine in a Smart Car and being surprised when you encounter performance problems.

Obviously, I am an Eller fan and clearly there are those who are not. But I think everyone can agree that management is being rather myopic if they cannot figure out how to use him and aren’t trading him fora more useable asset. I’d hate to see him go but I hate more seeing him bounced around the lineup and sat out. He is clearly an NHL caliber player.

It is a mistak to have Eller as a healthy scratch. This guy needs to play, everyone says Eller has to prove himself and needs a big year, having him as a healthy scratch in a 48 game season is not going to help.

We have all seen how small players have worked in the past and we are going down that road again with Gally. I like him and think he is a good player but Eller is bigger, faster and more skilled. Let the guy play… and let him play his natural position.

Hopefully Lars will be a little ticked off by this move and play that way the next game he finds himself in the lineup? Maybe he’ll lose the reputation of being the gentle Dane? Motivation, montivation, motivation!

I’m glad that Gallagher is playing tonight and the neither he or Galchenyuk will be dumped on the forth line. Great that Prust will be riding shotgun for the duo as well.

Should be a good game tonight with lots of emotion. I’d be shocked if the Habs were flat for this one?